Seven's Shadow
by To Mockingbird
Summary: Trapped in darkness, Kakashi refuses to leave ANBU. Years later, as the commander, he is ordered to train three utterly useless genin into competent shinobi.
1. First Descent

**Chapter One**

* * *

"I refuse."

The Sandaime Hokage looked at his ANBU commander calmly. His expression revealed nothing.

"You do not have that option." The Hokage slowly sipped his tea, eyes closed as he enjoyed the rich aroma and subtle flavors. He had assigned the mission one week ago so the commander could observe his new charges. Apparently, they weren't to his liking.

"The _children_ are nowhere near capable." The commander's tone was flat as always, but an undercurrent of... anger lurked beneath the surface. It had been years since Sarutobi had heard any emotion in the masked man's voice.

"Hmm?" Sarutobi set his cup down, questioning but not accusing.

"Their skills are atrocious. They have no talent, no skills, _nothing_ to recommend them. The Uchiha is emotionally compromised, and despite being hailed as a prodigy, he is barely better than the average genin. The girl has some control over chakra, but her reservoir is barely a puddle. At best, she will end up behind a desk. At worst, under a tombstone!"" The commander scoffed and continued. "And the jinchuuriki? He's the worst of all. He may have the advantages of a tailed beast, but that is all! He wants to be the Hokage, but he understands nothing about becoming a shinobi."

The younger man paused, gaining control of his emotions once again. "They are a _liability._" The last word was the worst insult imaginable, coming from him. "I will not have them in my ANBU."

_His_ ANBU? The Hokage raised an eyebrow slightly. Despite the commander's best attempts to squash all remnants of his humanity, the man still possessed the very human craving for companionship. Through the years, ANBU had become that family. A dysfunctional, clearly unhealthy family, but a family nonetheless. That explained his protectiveness, at least.

"Commander Hound," said Sarutobi softly, "it will become your job to teach them. All you said is true, but I have faith in your ability to change them." _And hopefully,_ he thought to himself, _this will be good for you as well_.

"Hokage-sama, I am not a simple jōnin-sensei. I have responsibilities to this village. There are others who can take on that role. Furthermore, the three are high-profile students. My ability to do _anything_ will be compromised if people are monitoring my activities. The village will not allow ANBU to teach genin."

"That won't be a problem. Hatake Kakashi will be assigned as their teacher to keep up appearances. However, _you_ will be the one teaching them." The Hokage smiled softly in amusement.

The commander froze, his muscles taut and utterly still. After few seconds of silence, he spoke. "_Hatake Kakashi_ is on an extended mission in Suna. He is frequently outside of the village and will not be a good choice for teaching."

"Hatake-san has been given several months of leave. He can teach them then. He also possesses the Sharingan. Sasuke will need his expertise."

"He can teach the Uchiha separately. Assign a different jōnin as the team's teacher."

"Commander," said Sarutobi sharply, raising his hand to quell all further protests. After a moment, he continued in a gentler voice. "Kakashi, this is an order."

The shocked Hound hissed at the use of his name, compulsively checking if anyone had heard it. The commander clenched then unclenched his fists before hiding behind his bland façade. Finally, he bowed.

"I understand, Hokage-sama."

* * *

Kakashi watched the three barely-genin with mild disgust. He had stood here for the past three hours, gradually expanding his chakra signature, and they still hadn't detected him. He was practically a beacon now, barely hiding his presence. What else did he have to do, wear a neon jumpsuit and carry a sign? They hadn't even looked for him nor done anything productive, content with simply sitting there. How pathetic. Eventually, Kakashi stepped out, flaring his chakra briefly to catch their attention.

The children snapped to attention, eyes widening as they finally noticed their teacher.

"You're late!" shouted the girl and the blond boy. They glared at him with irritation and disrespect he hadn't seen... well, since he was their age. Then again, he was the lazy Hatake Kakashi right now, not the Hound. The jōnin's visible eye flickered to the sullen Uchiha to see his reaction. The boy's moody expression had failed to hide his annoyance. They definitely had to work on concealment—the emotional _and_ physical kind. Honestly, had they stopped teaching subtlety at the Academy? The Academy still trained ninjas, right?

The three began to fidget slightly, unnerved by their teacher's silence and scrutiny.

"Um, sensei?" The hyperactive boy broke the silence with an obnoxious laugh. Kakashi smiled at the boy with enough false sweetness to rot teeth.

"Oh, I'm so sorry! I was just so impressed by your skills that I forgot to speak." Finally, prompted by the obvious sarcasm, a hint of suspicion entered the genin's eyes. Kakashi's grin grew wider. "You see, I was late because a little old lady needed help crossing the street with her absurdly heavy groceries, and I couldn't possibly say no. It wasn't my fault, I swear." The three stared at him with disbelief. To complete the image, he pulled out _Icha Icha Paradise_ and began flipping through the pages, stopping at his favorite chapter.

"What the hell?" Again, the blond child was the first to speak. "I-is that porn?"

Kakashi ignored him and continued reading, almost relishing the confused and angry atmosphere. The silence continued for a few minutes.

"S-sensei..." said the civilian girl, hesitantly. "Aren't you going to teach us?"

"Why?" he replied in a dull voice, attention seemingly on the novel.

"Because that's what you're supposed to do! What happened to the test and all the other stuff you talked about?" Naruto—the boy, he corrected—was turning bright red. Slowly, with exaggerated care, Kakashi closed the book.

"You want me to teach you? To test you?" He glared at the three, leaking enough killing intent to make even the stoic Uchiha stiffen. Kakashi laughed with condescension, startling the children. "You must be joking. Normally, I'd use the bell test. It's a tradition for Team 7, you see." He increased the pressure. "But I refuse to administer _any _test for a group so... useless." Kakashi smirked at the outrage his words had caused while internally frowning with disapproval. They were far too easy to rile up.

"Shut up!" The jinchuukiri glared, fists shaking. The others had equally angry expressions; the girl scowled to hide her tears, and the other boy had palmed a kunai.

"Oh, so you want to prove me wrong?" Kakashi sneered, radiating disdain. "Then attack me. Now." The genin all hesitated briefly, but that was all he needed. Kakashi flickered behind the Uchiha and sent him flying with a kick. He avoided the girl's sloppy punch before retaliating with a punch of his own. Finally, he grabbed the back of the nauseating orange jumpsuit and simply tossed the last kid onto the floor.

"Well?" Kakashi crossed his arms and waited. The Uchiha was the first to recover, and he quickly threw the kunai at his new sensei. Kakashi snatched the weapon out of the air and used the flat of the blade to deflect the blonde's kick before punching him in the stomach. Without looking, he flicked the kunai and pinned the girl to the tree.

"That's it? That's the skill of the so-called prodigy? That's the skill of the class's top kunoichi? How disappointing." He turned to the jinchuukiri, fixing him with a cold glare. "I didn't expect anything from the 'dead-last,' but you were even worse than I expected. That's almost an accomplishment."

The boy's face turned bright red. "You'll pay for that!" Kakashi watched as he performed the seals for the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu. _Well, that's the first interesting thing I've seen from these kids._

A dozen clones ran towards him, all shouting insults. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed the Uchiha prepare another attack and the girl free herself from the kunai.

With another simple body flicker, he appeared behind the Uchiha, disrupting his fire jutsu, and then kicked him into the pile of clones. Kakashi elbowed the girl back into the dirt after she attempted to throw the kunai.

He sighed in exaggerated dismay as he stared at the exhausted students lying on the ground. "Looks like you learned nothing at the Academy. I'll have to correct that." His voice grew serious as he filled the air with killing intent. "Listen, you brats. This is now your team. I am now your teacher. You don't have to like it. In fact, I don't expect you to. But you damn well better do as I say or you _will_ end up dead. Is that clear?"

The students said nothing, eyes wide.

"_Is that clear?"_

"Y-yes, sensei," they mumbled together. _Finally. Teamwork._ Kakashi glared at the three to drive his lessons home and suddenly felt a stab of doubt. Why the hell was he doing this? Whose idea was it to give him—the ruthless and definitely unstable ANBU commander—three completely innocent genin? Oh, right. It was the Hokage's idea... and he had sworn to obey that man's orders, whether he liked it or not. Kakashi withdrew the killing intent and nodded sharply.

"You are dismissed. I will see you at the same time tomorrow." Without a backwards glance, Kakashi left.

* * *

Commander Hound ran silently on the rooftops, flashing the _all clear_ symbol to the other ANBU patrolling. The sight of the ANBU's leader visibly traveling through the city was an unusual one and would have made all the others uneasy. Of course, he could have easily hidden himself, but random appearances kept his men on their toes.

After double-checking to make sure this house really was Naruto's, he leapt onto the roof. He felt a surge of amusement as the rookies stiffened in shock. Guard duty was always assigned to the newcomers, and he never passed up a chance to intimidate them.

Hound signed _stand down; patrol perimeter_ to Naruto's ANBU guards, and after making sure they obeyed his orders, he disabled the woefully weak wards and climbed in. Hound examined the room, noting the lack of furniture and its unkempt state. The little light from the moon cast eerie shadows on the walls. It almost looked like a scene from a nightmare.

Perfect.

* * *

Naruto tossed and turned, wrapping his ragged blanket tighter around his shivering body. Though normally a peaceful sleeper, Naruto had been restless all night. Disjointed and despairing thoughts swirled around his mind, bringing red-tinted images of yesterday's training to the forefront of his dreams.

He shivered, curling into a tighter ball, and suddenly jerked awake. Staring at him was a demon. Naruto yelped and threw the first thing he grabbed, which was his pillow. The demon simply side-stepped the fluffy object and waited. Then, Naruto realized that the demon was actually an ANBU member.

"Wh-who are you? What are you doing here?" Naruto, contrary to popular belief, wasn't _entirely_ oblivious. He knew that the ANBU watched him and always had. They rarely made contact with him, though, and never in the middle of the night.

"Get up." The man spoke the words with no emotion. Naruto gaped at him before hastily jumping out of bed. "Get ready and go to the Fifth Training Ground."

"Uh... w-what do you—"

"That is an order." As silently as he came, the ANBU operative vanished.

Naruto stared at the empty space where the man had been, going through the list of every prank he had played and wondering if he was in trouble. He stood up slowly, debating what to do next. The ANBU had always protected him, and even though he didn't really like them, he did trust them. Naruto made up his mind. He'd go. Now, if only he knew where the Fifth Training Ground was…

* * *

Hound frowned at the perfect house. The garden had flowers in neat rows, the white painted fence stood proudly and... dear God, was that a welcome mat? Why would you want to_ welcome_ someone into your home? He shook his head slowly. Civilians were weird.

Deftly, he opened the window and stealthily jumped in. There were no seals at all, leaving the house completely unprotected from shinobi. He'd have to teach the kids fūinjutsu. Their security was seriously lacking.

Hound glared at the stuffed bear on the girl's dresser before glancing at the sleeping child. Suddenly, he hesitated, realizing just how strange this situation was. Here he was, a grown man, creeping into a sleeping girl's room. He suppressed a shudder. He liked Jiraya's books well enough, but he did not want to emulate the man.

Hound stiffened as he realized that this was the second time in _two days _that he had felt doubts. He did nothing to hold back the irritation that was emanating from him. The sooner these brats were trained, the better. Hound released some killing intent. That should wake the girl up.

* * *

Sakura gasped, body protesting as she forced herself into a sitting position. Strange shadows had been chasing her through the forest, always a step behind her. Harsh voices whispered in her ears, calling her cruel names and threatening to hurt her. After what felt like hours of running, the deformed hands had finally caught her—and then she had woken up.

She took a deep breath, calming her frantic heart. Just a dream. Just a dream. Sakura looked up and screamed when she noticed the man at the foot of her bed. She clutched her blanket and screamed again as the lights flickered on and the door opened.

"Sakura? Are you alright?" Her mother's pale visage examined her with concern.

"I'm ok, mom. I... just had a bad dream." Sakura looked around frantically, searching for the strange man in her room. She extended her senses, like they were taught in the academy, but she could feel no one but herself and her mom. She had probably imagined him, then. He was just a remnant from the nightmare.

"Are you sure? Do you want me to warm some milk for you?"

"Yeah, I'm really ok. You should go back to sleep. I'll be fine."

"Alright, sweetie. Wake me up if you need anything." The door closed, and the lights turned off.

Sakura closed her eyes, took another deep breath, and nearly screamed again as a hand clamped down on her mouth.

"Be quiet," said a flat voice. "I am Commander Hound of the ANBU. Come to the Fifth Training Ground immediately." The hand lifted and the man stepped back. Her blood ran cold when she saw the mask. He _was_ part of the ANBU. The Special Assassination and Tactical Squad. The village's open secret. And somehow, she had caught their interest.

"Do you understand?"

She blinked. "Y-yes, sir." The words were barely out of her mouth before the man was gone. She hesitated and then got out of bed to change. There was no way she would keep an ANBU operative waiting.

* * *

All of Hound's men were paranoid bastards—he had made sure of that. And currently, that paranoia was worse than usual, thanks to traces found of a certain genocidal someone lurking around the Uchiha compound. There were twice as many guards, and all were a bit fidgety. If he entered Sasuke's house without any warning, they would have attacked him like sharks.

So, Hound did the reasonable thing, and he entered Sasuke's house without warning. Sadly, the famed Uchiha wards were in great disrepair, making it far too easy. He body-flickered inside the main house and flared his chakra, bright enough to catch the ANBU's attention, but not bright enough to wake the boy.

In exactly 1.39 seconds, the ANBU appeared around him, weapons out and prepared to battle.

"You were not fast enough," said Hound, critically. "You can shave at least 0.54 seconds off your current time of 1.39 seconds." At the same time, he signed, _I am taking the ward. Continue assignment._

The operatives indicated their understanding, and at his signal, dispersed. Satisfied, Hound materialized in the Uchiha boy's room.

* * *

Sasuke folded his arms and gazed out the window, unable to sleep. That was nothing unusual. Ever since _that day_, he had been plagued by terrible insomnia. No sleep was always preferable to nightmares. Tonight, however, his thoughts were different. Instead of agonizing about _that day_ and his plans to avenge his loved ones, Sasuke kept thinking about his failure on the training grounds. He had been... useless. That jōnin had destroyed him. Utterly.

Sasuke clenched his fists. He needed more power. He needed... Sasuke flinched and grabbed the shuriken under his pillow, throwing them at the intruder.

"Who are you?" he growled. Sasuke concentrated, concentrating his chakra into a beacon to alert his guards, wondering how they had missed the man. One glance at the mask made him realize why. Sasuke didn't recognize this particular one, though, and wondered if he was a new member.

"Go to the Fifth Training Grounds," said the man, voice completely emotionless.

"Why?" He glared at the masked figure. "I will not listen to unknown operatives." Itachi had been in ANBU, and this could be a ploy for all he knew.

"I am Commander Hound. You may confirm my identity with the ANBU stationed here." The supposed commander disappeared.

Sasuke sighed and rubbed his eyes. The _Commander _of ANBU? This wasn't good. He would confirm the man's identity with the other operatives, and if it checked out, he would go to the training grounds. The only thing worse than being summoned by the ANBU was refusing to answer those summons. He knew from experience.

* * *

Commander Hound watched from his spot in the trees. Finally, they had arrived. It was time to begin.

* * *

**AN:** If you were curious, the ANBU allowed Hound to pass once they sensed his chakra signature. To my knowledge, a chakra signature cannot be copied. It can be changed and muddled, but cannot be stolen or duplicated. The story assumes that ANBU operatives are familiar with the Commander's signature, and they use it as an identity check.

This story will not contain slash, and currently, there are no pairings planned. It is an AU and will diverge from canon frequently. It (obviously) contains ANBU!Kakashi, and it will feature strong!Team Seven.

Thank you for reading. All comments, criticism, and concerns are welcome.


	2. Training Tactics

**Chapter Two**

* * *

"B-bastard, what are you doing here?" Naruto glared at the impassive black-haired boy who refused to reply.

"Oh Sasuke-kun, you were called here too?" Sakura giggled and stepped closer. Of course Sasuke-kun would be here. He was so great that ANBU just had to pick him.

The paler-than-usual Sasuke remained silent and clenched his fists. Didn't these idiots realize that being called by ANBU was not a good thing?

"So, Sakura-chan, why d'ya think we're here?" Naruto tried to grin brightly, but sudden yawn derailed his attempt.

"I don't know," she mused. "Maybe we're being called to join ANBU?"

Sasuke scoffed, but Naruto simply looked thoughtful.

"I dunno either," said the blonde boy, "but maybe there was another 'ssassination attempt."

Sasuke didn't contradict him, and Sakura could have sworn that the expression on his face seemed to show a tiny bit of agreement.

She looked down at her hands. "But then why would call they me out? I'm not important... " Sakura suddenly glared at Naruto. "And who'd want to assassinate you, idiot?"

Naruto shrugged, clearly uncomfortable. "Not sure, but they've tried before." Both Sasuke and Sakura looked surprised at that statement.

"Your presence here is not because of an assassination attempt." The three whirled to face the expressionless voice. "You are here because of the Hokage's orders."

* * *

Hound examined the genin. Thankfully, all of them had changed into their day clothes, though they really should have been sleeping in them. Pajamas were for civilians. He glanced at the boy, eyes narrowing at the orange jumpsuit. He had half-expected the blonde to show up in his nightclothes, but that jumpsuit was almost as bad.

"Old man's orders? Well, were his orders?" asked the boy boldly. Hound waited, building up the suspense until they were fidgeting.

"His orders were for me to train you." He almost, _almost_ smiled at the shocked expression on their faces.

"W-what?" the boy shouted, nearly falling backwards in disbelief.

"Does that mean we're becoming part of ANBU?" questioned the barely-kunoichi nervously.

The Uchiha looked almost pleased, though he was just as stunned as the others.

"Of course not." Hound's muffled voice took a sharp edge. "Your skill level is not sufficient to join ANBU." He paused. "However, training all of you to ANBU-level is my aim." _How I am to achieve that aim is a different matter. By the Shodaime, these kids in ANBU? _He resisted the urge to shudder. "I will treat you like any other trainee operative, and I expect you to treat me as your commander. Is that clear?"

There were mumbled words and nods.

The air grew several degrees colder. "When I give you an order or ask you a question with the expectation of verbal agreement, you will respond by saying _yes sir_ or _yes commander._ In most situations, you will use the sign of confirmation." He demonstrated the hand signal slowly. "Is that clear?"

"Yes sir!" the three said, synchronized, using the signal awkwardly. Hound frowned at them behind his mask.

"Unless otherwise stated, all questions are presumed to be answered nonverbally."

They hesitated, and then signed their agreement. Shinobi were taught the standard sign language in the academy, but Hound fully intended on drilling them in it until they could do it in their sleep. Of course, Kakashi could take care of that. _He_ had other plans for training.

"I will not address you by your names." Hound faced the Uchiha. "You are now Pup." He looked at the girl. "You are Cub." Finally, he turned to the last boy. "And you are Kit." He ignored the irony and continued. "In my presence, you will only answer to those names."

"First, we will work on physical conditioning. We will start with stamina, before moving on to speed and power. Give me fifty laps."

He glared at them, silencing their cries of indignation. "Understood?"

They signed their affirmation reluctantly.

Hound nicked his thumb and summoned Akino, Bull, and Ūhei. The ninken looked at him, waiting for orders.

"Permission to use force granted. Chase them until they drop." They barked in agreement before sprinting after the children. At their wails, Hound briefly, _briefly_ smiled.

* * *

Naruto couldn't move.

It was a new day, with birds chirping and the sun shining. He could hear the bustle of activity outside as the village sprung to life. He could also hear the obnoxious blare of his alarm clock.

And he _absolutely no matter what I-don't-care-what-happens_ could not move. Every single muscle in his body was aching, _screaming_ its displeasure. For one hazy moment, he wondered why. Then, like a bucket of cold water had been dumped on his head, he remembered.

Naruto groaned. That damn ANBU commander had drilled them mercilessly. First, there were those stupid dogs, followed by a billion pushups, and finally, he had beat them up—oh sorry, _sparred._ That commander had barked—Naruto snickered at the pun—non-stop orders, forcing them to obey while they dodged random kunai and recited passages out of the shinobi handbook.

Naruto continued to stare at the ceiling, wondering if he really had to move. Slowly, he moved his arm, testing the muscles. Naruto brightened. It actually wasn't that bad. Naruto knew that he healed quickly, but he had expected the muscle pains to be worse. He slammed down on the alarm clock and jumped out of bed.

"Alright!" he shouted. "Believe it!" Naruto promptly toppled over as his body refused to cooperate. Actually, it was worse than he expected.

After many curse words and failed attempts, Naruto Uzumaki finally managed to get up and make instant ramen. He shoveled down the food of gods and limped out the door. He had to go to the Third Training Grounds to meet with asshole-sens... er, Kakashi-sensei. Though, in comparison to Commander Hound, Kakashi-sensei had been downright lovely.

Finally, Naruto arrived at the grounds. He was late, but neither Sakura nor Sasuke said anything.

"Huh," said Naruto, looking at his teammates. "You both look like crap."

Sasuke didn't even have the energy to glare snootily at him, and Sakura barely raised her fist before deciding against it. Naruto plopped down next to them, and together, they all stared off into the distance. Honestly, they didn't have the energy to do anything else.

"Well, if it isn't my adorable little team. How are you all doing?" a sickeningly cheerful voice said behind them.

Naruto twisted his body to get a better view of his sensei, and then winced as his muscles protested. He mumbled something in response.

"You all feel absolutely wonderful? Excellent! I have some training exercises and amazing D-ranks for you to do!"

Naruto groaned. Missions were great, but training required movement. He wondered if they'd be rescuing princesses, and then he speculated if he had any energy to do so. The gray-haired teacher turned to him, a smile frozen on his face.

"Is something wrong, Uzumaki?"

Naruto paled, thinking about the Commander's warning to make them disappear if they told anyone about the training. "N-no sir, just a little sore from yesterday. Yesterday's test, I mean! Where you beat us up. You know... that one."

Kakashi-sensei stared at him. "Alright." Their teacher gave an eye-smile, scrutiny of Naruto seemingly lifted. "Now, is everyone ready?"

Without thinking, the three signed in agreement, last night's training still fresh in their mind. Kakashi-sensei brightened.

"Oh? You three know signing?" There was suddenly a gleam in their teacher's eye that made them very, very nervous. "That gives me an idea... "

* * *

Sakura fumed, extremely tempted to punch the living daylights out of anyone or anything that came near. Finding that dumb cat was hard enough, but doing it while communicating only with signing? Inner Sakura screamed with the fury of a thousand dying suns at the injustice of it all.

_'Split and check sky,'_ signed Naruto. Sakura glared at him, confused, while Sasuke sighed.

_'Split and check trees?'_ Sasuke made it into a question by tilting his hand upwards. The sign for sky and tree were somewhat similar. He would have added an insult, but he didn't know any in sign language.

Sakura rolled her eyes at Naruto and signed her agreement. _'Meet here in thirty minutes?'_

Naruto and Sasuke confirmed the plan, and the three separated. They were going to find that cat, even if it was the last thing they did.

Kakashi glanced up from his book. Now that they couldn't talk, the three were getting along quite well. And by _well_, he meant _not_ _killing each other_. The threat of extra laps and pushups for every word they spoke seemed to be effective.

"Alright! We did it!"

Maybe not that effective. Kakashi silently flickered to his genin's location. There, a triumphant Naruto held up a disheveled and extremely cranky cat. The boy turned to his sensei and waved the frantic cat around.

"Look sensei!" Kakashi ignored the kid and cat, turning instead to his teammates_. 'Mission successful?' _he queried. Glumly, the two signed the affirmative.

"Congratulations on your first D-rank. However, Uzumaki spoke five words, so the three of you will be doing two-hundred extra pushups and twenty-five laps."

"What!? But sensei, we completed the mission! I didn't say anything until after I got that stupid cat!" protested the culprit.

"Did I say that the mission was complete? The mission isn't over until the leader confirms it is."

The blonde boy deflated slightly. "But why are you punishing Sakura and Sasuke? They didn't say anything."

"No, they didn't. However, you are their teammate. The actions of one member affect the others in a team. Never forget that." Kakashi fixed the three with his serious gaze. "Those who... " he trailed off as he looked at the team, so bright and full of hope.

"Those who what, sensei?" piped up Sakura. The genin looked at him curiously, waiting for his answer.

After a moment of deliberation, Kakashi spoke, voice low. "While those who break the rules are trash, those who abandon their comrades are worse than trash."

Naruto enthusiastically agreed, as if what Kakashi had stated was just common sense. Sakura nodded thoughtfully. Sasuke though... he looked uncertain.

"Just think about what I said." He paused then suddenly cleared his throat. "Right. Let's return the cat and continue training. We can't forget those extra laps and pushups, after all."

The children—mainly Naruto—groaned and grumbled their way to the Hokage's tower. Kakashi let them. They could complain all they wanted. Their training was not going to get any easier.

* * *

Quickly, Team 7 fell into a routine. During the day, Kakashi would work on ninjutsu, teamwork, and anything he considered general knowledge, and during the night, Hound would train them in taijutsu, stealth, and survival skills. But the one subject both planned to cover was something called... strategy.

After a grueling bout of taijutsu sparring, Hound signaled to his trainees. Immediately, all three stiffened and fell into the ready position, lining up in a row. The trainees looked at him keenly, warily, as they wondered what he'd do next. They were used to Hound's random commands and drills by now.

"Discuss the difference in approach between a three-way battle and a two-on-one battle where you are on the outnumbered side."

They stared at him.

"What?" Kit's face scrunched in confusion. He paled when the atmosphere grew heavier and quickly corrected his mistake. _'Clarification needed,' _he signed instead.

Hound frowned. The question was pretty straight forward. He had made it intentionally vague to gauge their level of strategic thinking. "Tell me the tactics you would use in a three-way battle and a two-on-one battle."

"Er..." Kit frowned. _'Permission to speak verbally?'_

_'Permission granted.'_

_"_What do you mean by tactics, sir?" Cub and Pup hid it better, but they were also confused—and interested in his answer.

Hond tilted his head slightly. "Did you not discuss battle strategies in the Academy?"

"Well, yeah, but what does that gotta do with this?"

Pup and Cub also requested to speak verbally, and Hound granted it and shifted his focus to the other two.

"Sir, could you give us more details?" asked Cub, her voice somewhat shaky.

"It's difficult to discuss strategy without knowing any specifics," Pup said. After a moment, he added, "sir."

Hound bit back a sigh. Well, he had drilled the importance of gathering information in their skulls. Knowledge was power, after all. It was a bit disconcerting that they couldn't discuss abstract strategy, but it wasn't too big of a problem.

"The terrain is flat, with no tree cover. The opponents are genin-level with mainly mid-range attacks. Your objective is to eliminate them as quickly as possible."

"That's easy!' shouted Kit. Hound winced, but motioned for him to continue. "I'd make a bunch of shadow clones and pound them all!"

"Idiot," scoffed Pup. "I wouldn't need any clones. If they're only genin-level, I'd be able to defeat them easily."

"Um… an ambush might work?" Cub murmured, looking down at her feet. "Though Sas—I mean, Pup would be able to take them down without it."

A heated argument quickly broke out as Kit shouted insults at Pup and Cub took Pup's side.

Commander Hound stared at them with dismay. Clearly, they knew _nothing_ about strategy. Sure, the jōnin-sensei handled the bulk of the tactical training, but the genin didn't even have a _weak_ foundation from the Academy, let alone a strong one. What evil had he done to deserve these children? _Well,_ thought Hound dryly, _perhaps the karma from killing hundreds of people has finally caught up with me._

This was going to be difficult. So far, Hound had been using a _very_ watered-down version of the ANBU conditioning. Everything he had been doing was proven to work; he had simply tweaked it to suit the genin. The teambuilding exercises, the stealth-training, the physical conditioning... all were from ANBU. Tactics, though, dealt with concepts. Those _couldn't _watered down. He'd have to teach them himself.

And Hound knew that he was a terrible teacher. Was he a genius when it came to practically everything? Yes, but that was exactly the problem. As a child, he had been able to learn almost anything without difficulty—whether it be complicated concepts or high-rank ninjutsu. The Sharingan had made learning even more intuitive. Add his utter lack of experience with children...

Yes. He was a _terrible_ teacher for these kids.

Hound released killing intent sharply, freezing the kids in their places. "Dismissed," he said briefly.

His team blinked at him in surprise. While Hound did vary the length of time they trained (predictability was practically death for a ninja, after all), never had their practice been so short.

"_Dismissed_," he repeated. Startled, the three acknowledged him and dispersed. Frowning, Hound took to the rooftops. He had to ask for a favor.

* * *

The Nara clan was most powerful at night. After all, that once the sun set, the ground was covered in shadows.

The Nara clan was even stronger in their compound. The place was built like a shadow fortress to maximize coverage.

_Therefore, _concluded Nara Shikaku, _the enemy who invaded the compound is an utter idiot._ _Or,_ he thought, recognizing the chakra signature,_ they aren't an enemy at all._

Reluctantly, the clan head stood up and made his way to the balcony outside his study. Shikaku folded his arms and smirked at the man trapped in his shadow jutsu.

"Commander Hound," he drawled, releasing the jutsu, "to what do I owe this pleasure?" At the same time, Shikaku signed _'Emergency situation?' _

"Commander Nara," acknowledged the other man. "Perhaps we can discuss this somewhere more private." _'Negative. Current situation stable.' _

Shikaku sighed. "Troublesome. Alright, come in."

The younger man followed him into the study. The jōnin commander studied his ANBU counterpoint before gesturing to a plush seat. "Sit down," he grumbled. "I have a feeling this will take a while. So, what do you need?"

Hound hesitated. "I... need a personal favor."

"What?" Shikaku narrowed his eyes as Hound took his ANBU mask off.

"A favor." Hatake Kakashi's lone eye gazed at him steadily. If it weren't for the placidness of the young man's expression, Shikaku would have sworn he looked embarrassed.

"Well," said Shikaku slowly, "who's asking?" _And why did you need to come in the middle of the night to ask me?_

"I'm asking as both the ANBU Commander and Hatake Kakashi."

The jōnin commander sighed. "Even more troublesome. Now, don't leave me in suspense. What do you want?"

Then, much to Shikaku's surprise, Kakashi fidgeted. _Fidgeted._

"Ah... I need your help training my genin team."

The Nara clan head stared. And stared. And stared some more. He tried to keep the amusement off his face, but he didn't succeed.

"Your genin team?" Shikaku raised an eyebrow and openly grinned, giving up on hiding his mirth.

Kakashi twitched with annoyance and embarrassment. Shikaku had never seen the man look more human. "My team is completely incompetent when it comes to strategy. And," he paused, "I'm not a very good teacher," admitted Kakashi.

The jonin commander chuckled. "While I have no problem with teaching your kids, why in the world did you come as the ANBU commander in the middle of the night? This isn't exactly a priority mission."

"Training the genin team technically _is_ an ANBU mission," confessed Kakashi. "The Hokage asked me to give them the ANBU training as well. The Uchiha and Jinchukiri are practically walking targets, after all."

"Right." _Plus the Hokage probably knew that you would refuse to accept the team if he didn't make it an official mission._

"Thank you, commander. I appreciate your help." Kakashi put his mask back on, preparing to depart.

"Call me Shikaku. How about you come over for tea at two tomorrow to discuss their training further? Bring your kids, too."

Hound halted. "Of course, Commander Nara."

"It's Shikaku."

Hound tilted his head in acknowledgement and disappeared through the window. Nara Shikaku smirked again before glancing at his paperwork.

"Hm. Troublesome."

* * *

**AN: **Thanks to everyone who read, followed, and favorited. Special thanks to **Poppy Grave Dreams, Shinobi of life, and alex6177** for reviewing. Super special thanks to **LongRoadtoNowhere **for the incredibly helpful criticism and advice.

Again, thanks for reading. All comments, criticism, and concerns are welcome.


	3. Growing Pain

**Chapter Three**

* * *

Kakashi observed the spar between Sakura and Sasuke with mild approval. The girl had improved by leaps and bounds. Surprisingly, Sakura had a talent for taijutsu. She probably hadn't realized that in the academy, too intent on keeping her nails clean or whatever preteen girls worried about.

Of course, she still had a long way to go before she was near Sasuke's level. And Sakura still hesitated to hit her _beloved Sasuke-kun_, often faltering or reducing the power of her blows.

Sasuke sent a punch, aiming to catch the kunoichi in the shoulder. With a perfectly executed textbook maneuver, Sakura turned, avoided the blow, and slipped under his guard. She managed to land the hit before Sasuke retaliated with a swift kick, knocking her to the ground and pinning her with his foot.

"Not bad," said Kakashi, putting the book away. "But that's enough." His genin looked at him with curiosity and apprehension. Once the book was gone, things became serious. "Maa... let's talk about strategy."

Naruto looked confused, and Sakura seemed interested. Sasuke had his normally blank mask plastered on, but a glimmer of suspicion appeared on his face. _Making connections, is he?_

"Sakura, why did you lose that spar?" he asked.

"Because Sasuke-kun's stronger than me!" Sakura replied immediately.

"Well, you're not wrong," said Kakashi sardonically. "But is strength the only way to win?"

"Of course it is." Sasuke narrowed his eyes.

"Not true. You can win by being smarter, too. Let's take... oh, the spar we had on our first day as a team. Do you remember?"

Sasuke glared at him, irritated at the memory. He grunted in response.

"Strength was definitely one reason why I won, but it wasn't the only one. You see, I had another major advantage. Do you know what it was?"

"Uh... your ninjuntsu?" guessed Naruto.

"No. I won because you three underestimated me." Kakashi looked at them from under a droopy eye. "How could someone so lazy and unprofessional possibly be a strong shinobi? After all, I hadn't even dodged the chalkboard eraser."

His gaze sharpened, and his posture straightened. Gone was the pretense of nonchalance. At the moment, Kakashi looked every bit the killer he was. His voice was soft but cold. "How you present yourself affects how others see you. Having your enemies underestimate you can be very useful, but underestimating your enemies will be deadly. Look underneath the underneath. Take nothing at face value."

Before they could blink, Kakashi was back to lounging against the tree, book in hand. "Now, my little genin, why is it useful to be underestimated?"

Sakura was the first to recover. "Because your enemies will be caught off guard, right?"

"Correct. Don't make that mistake, kids. Always overestimate the power of your opponent. You'll just be pleasantly surprised if they happen to be weaker."

"But sensei," piped up Naruto, "isn't it good to have a reputation?"

"It can be. When would having a strong reputation be helpful, Sakura?"

Though startled at being put on the spot, Sakura answered. "Um... when you're protecting someone, right? Then people won't attack you."

Kakashi nodded. "When you want to avoid a fight, intimidation is a fairly effective tactic. When you want to win a fight, appearing weak is a better one. And speaking of tactics, why don't we go visit a friend of mine?"

The genin exchanged looks.

"Great!" chirped Kakashi. "Let's go."

* * *

"Sensei, where are we?" asked Naruto, staring dubiously at the large building.

"Ah... we're at the Nara Compound." Kakashi ruffled the blonde's hair, ignoring the indignant squawk. He observed the guards slumped by the gate. The two teenagers stuck on guard duty eyed the three children with mild distrust.

"State your name and business here," drawled the guard. Kakashi dropped the genjutsu concealing his presence. The two flinched and prepared their chakra.

"I'm Hatake Kakashi, and this is my genin team. We're here for tea."

Their demeanor changed completely, and the teenagers stared wide-eyed at all of them.

"O-oh, Hatake-san. I didn't know you had a genin team!" exclaimed one. He gazed at Kakashi with mild awe.

"Er, right this way," said the other nervously. "Uh, Nara-sama is expecting you."

Kakashi walked into the compound with his team. The genin looked around, intrigued by their surroundings.

"Hey, the roofs here are kinda weird," commented Naruto.

"They are pretty odd looking," agreed a new voice. Nara Shikaku waved, leaning against the wall of the main house. "You're late."

"Uh, sorry. You see, a cat-fight broke out. I had to stop it.," replied Kakashi. "Children, this is Nara Shikaku, Commander of the jōnin Forces and Head of the Nara Clan. Commander, this is my team." He gestured at each of them in turn. "The pouty kid is Uchiha Sasuke, the knucklehead is Uzumaki Naruto, and the pink one is Haruno Sakura." Kakashi ignored their outraged looks.

"Nice to meet you," Shikaku said, hands in his pockets. He looked at Kakashi and grinned. "Didn't I tell you to call me Shikaku?"

"Ok, Shikaku-san," replied Kakashi, just as casually. "Call me Kakashi, then." A hint of amusement appeared in the Nara's eyes.

Sakura spoke up, apprehensive but hidding it well. "Kakashi-sensei, does that mean Commander Nara is your leader?"

Shikaku smirked, and Kakash's eye crinkled. "You could say that," replied Kakashi. He looked at his genin, changing the subject before they could ask any more questions. "Shikaku-san kindly agreed to help train you all in strategy. Now, I expect you to treat him with respect and listen to his directions. Is that clear?"

The three nodded, suitably cowed by Kakashi's glare.

"Right." Shikaku crossed his arms. "We'll start with the basics. Shikamaru, come here!" An irritated looking Shikamaru appeared from... somewhere. Naruto blinked as he tried to figure out how his former classmate had done that. "I need you to teach your friends here how to play shogi. You know what will happen if you don't." Shikaku fixed his son with a look that managed to be simultaneously threatening and laid-back.

"What'll happen if he doesn't?" asked Naruto curiously.

Shikaku smirked. "I'll burn his shogi pieces and give his books to the Inuzaku clan to use for their puppies." His smirk widened. "And do some other stuff."

"Troublesome," muttered Shikamaru. He beckoned reluctantly to the other genin. "The strategy room's this way."

The two jounin watched as the kids walked across the compound. Kakashi turned to the commander, dark eye mildly reproachful. "Leaving the training to your son?"

Shikaku slouched further. "Eh, it's too much work to do it myself. Besides, I gave Shikamaru specific instructions. He's a genius, you know, with the potential to become much better than me. They'll be fine with him. Anyway, working with my son will help all of them. Sasuke still thinks he's the best at everything, and losing to a peer will help get rid of his large ego. It'll also allow Sakura to overcome her blind hero-worship of the boy and give Naruto some real confidence. I'll take over once they're ready."

"Shikamaru will gain experience from his peers as well," noted Kakashi. "I suppose you read my students' profile?"

"Of course. Did you expect me to create a lesson plan without knowing anything about your kids? That's just foolish. This way, I'll be able to the minimum amount of work with the maximum results."

The younger man looked almost amused. "Impressive. Lazy _and_ effective."

"That's the Nara way." Shikaku motioned towards his home. "Tea?"

* * *

Naruto concentrated on the game, forehead scrunched. He picked up one of the pieces and slammed it on to the board.

"Ha!"

Shikamaru didn't look up from his Sudoku book. "Naruto, you do realize that a knight can't move there?"

"Oh. I knew that." Naruto resumed frowning at the board.

"Mah, don't feel bad. You're just learning." Shikamaru smirked at Sasuke, who was fuming at the board. "On the other hand, some people don't have that excuse."

Sakura looked at Shikamaru with mild amazement. How in the world was he managing to play three simultaneous games while finishing his Sudoku puzzles and _win?_ And against _Sasuke-kun_ too_?_ The Uchiha had scoffed, saying how he didn't need a refresher in shogi—especially not from someone so lazy. After challenging him to a match, the Nara had destroyed him in less than one minute.

Sakura was about to move her lance to capture Shikamaru's pawn, but she suddenly hesitated. Sakura narrowed her eyes and studied the board. Instead, she moved her bishop away, avoiding the trap. Shikamaru nodded in approval.

"Believe it! YEAH!" Naruto pumped his fist in the air. The Nara heir blinked at the board, and an emotion almost resembling surprise appeared on his face.

"Huh. I didn't expect that move." Shikamaru picked up his rook. "But you left yourself open to attack here. Check."

"Check what?"

"Your king is in check." Shikamaru quickly explained the details.

"Agh! This game has too many rules! It makes my head hurt!" Naruto pouted but continued playing.

Sasuke's eyes scanned the pieces. He tried to figure out what Shikamaru's plan was. Why in the world had he moved his pawn there? The lazy kid had beaten him three times already. Unacceptable. Sasuke gritted his teeth and swallowed his pride.

"Nara-san," said Sasuke quietly, "why did you move your pawn there?"

Shikamaru smiled. "It's the beginnings of a trap. If you moved your rook here, I would be able to take it with my bishop. If you ignored the pawn, I would be able to pin your silver general with my knight."

Shikamaru outlined his plans for the game, telling Sasuke his moves and countermoves. Sasuke listened in disbelief.

"Did you plan for _everything?_"

"Nah, that's too much work. Instead of preparing for anything, it's better to force your opponent into making the moves you want."

Sasuke nodded slowly. His broth—when he had learned shogi, he had learned that also. That was common knowledge, really. But that still didn't explain why Shikamaru kept beating him. Sasuke moved lance and counterattacked. The Nara frowned.

"You're focusing on strategy instead of tactics."

Naruto, who had also been listening, spoke up. "Eh? What's the difference?"

"Strategy is the overall plan. Tactics are how you achieve it." Shikamaru motioned to the board. "Pinning your knight here is the tactic. Using that pin to put your king in check is the strategy." Shikamaru looked at Sasuke. "You're so caught up in your grand plan that you fail to see the pieces in front of you. Once something goes wrong, your strategy completely falls apart." Shikamaru moved his rook. "Checkmate."

Naruto snickered. "Huh! Sasuke, you're bad at this game." Sasuke glared in response.

"Naruto, on the other hand, has the opposite problem." Shikamaru pointed to the cluster of pieces on the other board. "His attacks and counters are great, but he doesn't have any long-term goal in mind. If you only fight rashly, you won't be able to win." Shikamaru captured Naruto's silver general.

"What about me?" asked Sakura seriously.

The Nara glanced at the unmoved pieces on Sakura's board. "You're too hesitant. You refuse to attack, even when you have the advantage, and you're too worried about consequences to commit to a strategy. If you don't risk anything, there's no use playing."

Shikamaru started resetting the pieces on Sasuke's board. "Should we continue?"

* * *

The clan head looked up from his tea. "I think that's enough training for today."

Kakashi hummed in agreement and placed his tea back on the table. "Thank you, Shikaku-san."

"It was my pleasure," replied Shikaku sincerely. Truly intelligent company was a rarity, even in the Nara compound. "I look forward to seeing you and your team during our next session."

"Sounds good to me." Kakashi stood up. "I should go fetch my genin."

Shikaku followed. "Kakashi-san, do you want to come over for lunch this Saturday? Chouza, Inoichi, and a few other jōnin are coming over for a small gathering."

Kakashi paused. "To discuss something?" The silver-haired ninja tapped his fingers lightly against his leg, sending a message. _Emergency meeting?_

"No, just for fun." Shikaku almost laughed at the puzzled expression on Kakashi's face.

"Ah... perhaps. It depends." Kakashi awkwardly rubbed the back of his head. "I might have some... stuff to do."

The Nara grinned. "Saturday it is."

Kakashi eyed the door. "I'll see you later. Thanks for the tea."

Shikaku sighed as the younger man escaped. One of these days, he'd get that boy to accept his invitation.

Today had been pretty successful, actually. His son had done something productive for once, Team Seven had learned about strategy, and Kakashi had been forced to socialize. And all of this was accomplished without any effort from Shikaku's part. Perfect.

* * *

Kakashi looked over the files of his team, adding notes and updating information. Like the Team Seven before them, this one was supposed to be an all-rounded combat team. He picked up Sakura's file and frowned.

No matter how he looked at it, Sakura was clearly the weakest link. Her chakra control would make her a natural med-nin or genjutsu user, but until she could hold her own, Sakura would be dead weight. Her taijutsu needed to improve greatly. It had gotten better, but it wasn't enough. Kakashi knew just how to fix that.

He returned his focus to the other two. They would definitely be ninjutsu-users. With Naruto's ridiculous chakra pool and Sasuke's sharingan and talent, the two would dominate the battlefield.

Kakashi bit back a groan. He'd have to teach them himself. Frankly, no one here rivaled Kakashi in ninjutsu, whether it be shape transformation or nature transformation. He was called "the man who copied a thousand techniques" for a reason, after all.

He grumbled as he made a list of potential jutsu to teach them. They'd work on—

Kakashi froze as he felt the chakra flare outside his house. He grabbed his mask and cloak, setting the paper aside. In a fluid movement, he leapt through his window, landing on the roof next to his house.

_'Report,' _signed Hound.

The cat-masked ANBU replied quickly. _'Emergency situation in headquarters. Presence requested.'_

_'Acknowledged.'_

* * *

Sakura rubbed the sleep out of her blurry eyes and scowled balefully at her alarm clock. It was four o'clock in the morning. _Four_. She turned her glower to the window where Kakashi-sensei was perched, book in hand.

"Good morning, Sakura."

"What are you doing in my room?" whispered Sakura harshly. "It's four in the morning!"

"Yes, what a lovely day. Let's go train." Somehow, Kakashi-sensei made his usual eye-smile ten times more obnoxious than usual.

"No! It's too early!" For some reason, Hound-sensei hadn't trained them last night, and Sakura needed to catch up on some much needed sleep.

"Sakura. Now." The young girl flinched at her teacher's flat tone. Oddly, she was reminded of the Commander.

"Fine," she grumbled. She jumped out of bed and waited. "Sensei, you aren't going to watch me change, are you?"

Kakashi moved the book higher, covering the rest of his face. "Of course not," he mumbled. "But you should really get used to sleeping in your shinobi outfit. It's a good habit to get into." Her weird pervert teacher flickered away.

Sakura sighed and drew the window curtains shut. She quickly put on her clothes and stuck her head out the window.

"Looking for me?"

Sakura almost yelped when she realized that her teacher was standing on her roof. She muttered insults under her breath and climbed out.

"What are we doing?"

"The better question is what are _you_ doing? Now, hurry up." Sakura struggled to keep pace with her teacher, but she noticed something odd. Kakashi-sensei seemed to be favoring his left side, barely putting any pressure on his right leg.

"We're here!" Kakashi paused on the outskirts of town by Training Field Nine. Sakura glanced at her teacher. His face (or what she could see of it) was paler than usual. Was it a trick of the light?

"Sensei, are you ok?"

Kakashi's gaze turned calculating. "I'm fine." His cheerful expression returned. "Now, get down there before he sees me—I mean, us."

"You aren't coming?"

"Hell no. Have fun!" He disappeared before she could say anything more.

Sakura huffed and jumped, landing neatly on the floor. She looked around, wondering why Kakashi-sensei had dropped her here. Then, Sakura noticed something green barreling towards her.

"You must be the Youthful Student my Eternal Rival has sent to experience the Power of Youth!"

Sakura blinked in confusion.

"How Youthful for my Rival to entrust to me the Care of Such a Promising Flower!"

Youth? Flower? What?

"Join us as we partake in the Springtime of Youth to protect Friendships and Enrich the Soul!" The green man struck a pose, almost blinding Sakura with his teeth.

"Sensei! Will we Experience the Power of Youth today?" A mini green person appeared beside the green man. Sakura blinked again. Mitosis?

"Good morning, sensei. Good morning, Lee." A yawning girl with two buns walked up to the group, and a pale-eyed boy with long hair followed her. Sakura looked at the boy and noticed how his eyes were the same as Hinata's. The other girl paused upon seeing Sakura. "Huh? Who's this?"

Lee's eyes widened. "Yes, who is this Beautiful Blossom of Youth?"

"This Flower is my Eternal Rival's student! She has come to join us in our Pursuit of Youth!"

The girl looked at Sakura with interest. "So you're Hatake Kakashi's student?"

"Y-yeah. I'm on his genin team."

"Nice to meet you! I'm Tenten." The girl smiled. "You must be really talented. I don't think Hatake-san's ever taken a team before."

Sakura looked down. "Um, I'm not really that talented."

Tenten waived away her comment. "Anyway, I'm so glad to meet another kunoichi who takes her training seriously." She made a face. "Practically all of the kunoichi our age are silly fangirls. Okay, that might be exaggerating it a little, but still! They're always hanging around one guy or another. It's _so_ annoying. I mean, don't they have any self-respect or pride as a ninja?"

Sakura blushed. "I guess."

"Oh, since this guy here is too stuck-up to introduce himself, I'll do it for him. This is Hyuuga Neiji, my teammate." The mentioned boy glared and looked away. Sakura tilted her head. Hyuuga? Hinata's last name was Hyuuga. They probably _were_ related.

"And I am Rock Lee!" said the small green one.

"I'm Haruno Sakura," said Sakura. "Thank you for letting me train." She watched in mild horror as Lee suddenly fell to his knees and grabbed her hand.

"My Beautiful Blossom Sakura! Will you—"

"Sensei, shouldn't we start training?" interrupted Tenten.

"Of course, my Youthful Tenten! Let us begin our Journey into Springtime!"

Gai took the lead, followed by Lee and Neiji. Tenten jogged beside Sakura. "It's ok if you can't keep up. Gai-sensei's exercises are brutal at first. If you need to stop or want some help, just let me know, ok?"

Sakura smiled but shook her head. "I think I can manage." This couldn't possibly be worse than Hound-sensei's training.

* * *

Sakura kneeled by the side of the road and threw up. Her skin was flushed, and her hair stuck to her sweat-drenched face. Her breath caught as she attempted to get her body under control.

Someone gathered the hair out of her face, preventing it from falling into the mess in front of her. Sakura vomited again, spitting up bile as her empty stomach rebelled against her.

"You'll be fine," murmured a kind voice. "Your body just overheated from the exercises. Here, drink this slowly." Sakura grabbed the water bottle and took careful sips. A hand brushed her bangs aside.

"Thanks, Tenten," said Sakura shakily.

"No problem." Tenten smiled. "Though you should really consider putting your hair up. It'll just get in the way during training."

"Y-yeah, that's a good idea." Sakura unsteadily attempted to tie her hair into a knot.

"Here, let me." Deftly, Tenten twisted the pink hair into a loose but secure bun. "Now... I know just the thing." Sakura closed her eyes and tried to stabilize her breathing while the older girl reached into her bag and pulled out a scroll. When she opened her eyes, Tenten was tucking something into her hair.

"What is it?" asked Sakura, reaching out to feel it.

"Senbon," replied Tenten. When she saw Sakura freeze, Tenten added, "Don't worry, they're blunt. It's best to get used to the not-pointy ones first. Long hair is often a disadvantage in battle, but keeping weapons in it can turn it into an advantage instead."

"That's smart." Sakura looked at Tenten curiously. "Do you normally carry blunt senbon around?"

Tenten laughed. "I blunt a lot of weapons during practice. I keep them in my bag until I can sharpen them again."

The pink-headed girl colored with embarrassment. "I guess that makes sense." Sakura looked down at her feet. "I'm sorry for holding you back, Tenten-senpai."

"It's fine! You did really good for a rookie genin. Actually, I think your first try was better than mine."

Sakura gave a small smile. "That's only because Hou—Kakashi-sensei made us do physical conditioning. Gai-sensei's training is much harder, though."

The older girl made a face. "Gai-sensei certainly is... enthusiastic about training. Do you want to sit this lap out?"

"No no, I can continue!" protested Sakura. Tenten patted her on the head playfully.

"Alright, my little kohai. Let's go."

Sakura followed Tenten, determined to keep up. Briefly, Sakura wondered if this was what having an older sister was like. It was a nice feeling, she decided. It was very nice.

* * *

"You're late!" Naruto shouted at his eternally tardy teacher. The blonde finished his last push-up and stretched.

"I said one-hundred fifty pushups, not one hundred, Naruto." Kakashi ran his fingers through his hair, making the gravity-defying hair stick out more. "And I'm late because a flying squirrel attacked me."

"Liar," grumbled Naruto. Regardless, he dropped to the ground and did fifty more. Sasuke had already finished his pushups and had started on crunches.

"Hey sensei, what happened to Sakura?" Naruto asked.

"She's doing some special training."

"Aw, not fair! I wanna do special training too!"

"Alright."

Naruto flinched. That had actually_ worked?_

Sasuke looked dubiously at his teacher. "What's the catch?"

"Nothing. I just think it's time to work on my _favorite_ subject."

"What's that?" asked Naruto.

"Ninjutsu."

He groaned. "Sensei, we've already done ninjutsu! You make us practice the standard Academy jutsu for hours!"

"I'm talking about a different kind of ninjutsu. Specifically, elemental transformations."

Naruto's eyes widened. "Really? Sweet!"

"First things first. What do you know about your elemental affinity?"

"Uh... what?" The blonde scratched his head. Sasuke smirked.

"My affinity is lightning with a secondary fire characterstic," stated Sasuke, shooting Naruto a condescending look.

"Aw, shut up, bastard!" Naruto said, without any real venom. He pouted. "It's not my fault that I dunno!"

"Alright, that's enough." Kakashi nodded at Naruto. "You were tested before, in the hospital. Your affinity is wind." After Naruto had been made into a jinchukiri, they had run a series of tests on everything, including affinity.

"Cool! Can I blow stuff up with it?"

"Wind can be pretty destructive." Kakashi thought briefly of another blonde wind-user before tossing a few scrolls at the boys. "Naruto, you'll learn _Fūton: Wind Gale_. It's useful for redirecting your enemy's attacks or distracting them. The other scroll is _Suiton: Cloud Drain_. Water isn't your affinity, but it's always good to know at least one water technique." Kakashi looked at Sasuke. "I want you to learn to _Katon: Fire Spread_. It can help you deal with a group of enemies quickly. The other scroll has _Raiton: Charged Palm._ It paralyzes an enemy and works at close range."

Sasuke opened his scroll and studied it. Suddenly, he narrowed his eyes. "Sensei, this is an Uchiha technique. Where did you get it?"

"Ah... I've worked with the Uchiha in the past, you know." Kakashi shrugged. He'd expected this reaction.

"Yes, but how did you get one of their techniques?" He gestured at the handwriting, teeth clenched. "It's clearly not an official scroll, and my family would _never _teach a jutsu to an outsider."

Kakashi stared at Sasuke with mild disbelief. Did the boy not know about his Sharingan? Now, Kakashi didn't particularly care about his reputation, but he knew that he was considered one of Konoha's strongest shinobi. And his Sharingan was _part _of that reputation. Hell, he was _called_ the Copy-nin, Sharingan no Kakashi!

The Uchiha had always disliked him; many had held him responsible for Obito's death, calling him a murderer and a thief. They had used his story as a cautionary tale to scare children. Furthermore, the shinobi clans taught their kids about all the prominent ninja, so how... _oh_.

How could he have been so _stupid?_ Of course Sasuke didn't know about anyone. His family had died before they could teach him how to navigate the politics of the shinobi world. _Dammit_. Another subject to work on.

Kakashi's eye flickered to Naruto. Despite how loudly the boy proclaimed his aim to be Hokage, Kakashi had no doubt that Naruto knew nothing about politics, either. What a shame that Minato's son—_no._ Kakashi pushed the flood of memories away.

"Eh, where I learned that jutsu isn't important."

"But it is." Sasuke's hands were clenched and shaking in an uncharacteristic show of emotion. "I need to know."

Kakashi was silent. "I'll tell you what," he said finally. "If you and Naruto master the jutsu I gave you, then I'll tell you."

"No!" Sasuke closed his eyes and forced himself to stop trembling. "Tell me now."

Kakashi pinned the Uchiha with his gaze. "I will not," he said, tone unyielding. He sighed as he noted the familiar, desolate look in the boy's eyes. "Sasuke," he began, gentler than before. "The Uchiha clan and I have had a complicated relationship. I _will_ tell you everything, but not now. Focus on your training first."

Sasuke grabbed the scroll and walked away stiffly.

"Hey ba-Sasuke, what's wrong?" Naruto ran after the other boy, scrolls also in hand. "Sasuke? Where are you going?"

The silver-haired man grimaced. Well, that went well. Kakashi quietly followed them, almost wincing when his injury hindered his movements. He probably shouldn't leave them unattended while they attempted new jutsu. That was just asking for trouble. And God knew that with this team, _more_ trouble was the last thing he needed.

* * *

Chapter Four Preview: the team burns down a forest, experiences politics, and realizes their improvement. Also, Hound returns!

**AN: **The following chapter should be the end of the training arc and the beginning of their first mission.

Thanks to everyone, including my anonymous reviewers, your kind words. Your response just blew me away. This chapter was a bit longer than the others, and I hope you enjoyed it.

As always, all criticism, comments and concerns are welcome.


	4. Finish Lines

**Chapter Three**

* * *

Hidden from view, Kakashi watched as Naruto and Sasuke attempted the new jutsu.

Sasuke focused with a single-minded determination, sweat beading on his forehead as he tried again and again. Creating a wave of fire was more difficult than it looked. The technique required concentrating the chakra to create the flames while simultaneously spreading the fire outwards. Sasuke had already managed a weak spread of fire, though it was not nearly as powerful as it should be.

Naruto seemed to be having more difficulty. "Argh!" he cried out after another failed attempt. He kicked a stone into the river beside them. "I keep trying to make my chakra thin like it says, but it isn't working!"

"Idiot, that's because you're doing the hand signs wrong." Sasuke finally looked at his teammate. "It's bird, not rat."

"Oh. I knew that!"

Kakashi stilled as he felt chakra flare in a pattern. He flared his own in response, and an ANBU operative appeared beside him.

_'Presence requested at base.'_

Kakashi nodded shortly. _'Acknowledged.'_ He stood up on the branch, barely suppressing a wince as his injury acted up again. The sharp-eyed operative wasn't fooled. The ANBU member glanced around, then spoke in a whisper.

"Commander, are you—"

"I am fine." He shot the mouse-masked man a look that ended that line of questioning. The silver-haired jounin ran through the signs for a shadow clone. "Watch over the kids," he ordered his doppelganger. The clone nodded, and the commander and his soldier disappeared in a swirl of leaves.

* * *

"It's not fair! How come you can do it but I can't? Your jutsu must be easier!" complained Naruto. The wind jutsu was easy enough, but the water one was basically _impossible_.

"Hn." Sasuke smirked. "It's not easier. I'm just better."

"Shut up!" Naruto watched enviously as Sasuke created a wide arc of flames. Suddenly, the Uchiha frowned.

"What's wrong?" muttered Naruto. "Fire not pretty enough for you?"

Sasuke shot Naruto a vaguely annoyed look. "The flames aren't spreading out far enough. It's supposed to span fifteen feet, but my fire barely reaches eight feet."

"So what? Just put more chakra."

The other boy hesitated. "I don't know if that's a good idea." The amount of chakra mattered, but the control was equally important.

A grin spread across Naruto's face. "Hah! You're just embarrassed that you can't do it right! See? You're not so perfect, are you? Looks like the genius can't do everything, huh?"

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "Fine. I'll show you how it really works." Sasuke went through the seals and breathed in. "_Katon: Fire Spread!"_ He pumped chakra into the technique, creating an unchecked seventeen-foot-long wave of flames—and causing the surrounding trees to catch on fire.

The boys looked at the blaze for a few moments in silence.

"Crap!" Naruto turned around frantically, freezing as an idea struck. "I got it!" Carefully performing the seals, Naruto forced as much chakra as he could. "_Fūton: Wind Gale!"_

"You idiot!" shouted Sasuke. A gigantic burst of wind howled through the entire forest, carrying the flames even further. "Wind doesn't put out fire!"

"Uh . . . what do we do?" Naruto started panicking. "Maybe we can try that water jutsu? Someone! Help!"

"Do you really think we can learn a _water technique_ in a few minutes?"

"Do you have any better ideas?"

Naruto and Sasuke looked at each other. "Let's do it."

* * *

Shadow Clone Kakashi watched in horror as the entire forest was set ablaze.

"Dammit." The clone didn't have enough chakra to put out the fire, and attempting a rescue mission would probably dispel him anyway. The shadow clone clenched his teeth and disappeared in a puff of smoke.

* * *

" . . . leading to the current status," finished the solemn women.

Commander Hound looked impassively at the three captains. "In other words, the situation has become worse."

"Yes, sir."

The commander spoke. "I will—" He cut off mid-sentence. All the ANBU operatives in the room stilled.

"Sir?" asked one. Everyone immediately went on high alert.

"Commander!" A cat-masked ANBU operative rushed to his side. "Are you alright? Is your wound bothering you?"

"I am _fine._" Slight irritation leaked into his voice. "I simply have urgent business to attend to. Vice-Commander, take charge in my absence. I will return shortly."

_'Tenzo, come with me,' _communicated the commander. The cat-masked operative affirmed the order and followed him out.

"Commander?" asked the agent hesitantly. "What are we—that is, so . . ." He fumbled over his words.

"Change out of your uniform. We cannot appear as ANBU operatives. Hurry." The operative quickly shrugged off his cloak and mask before flickering out of the building.

"Uh . . . sir, where are we going?" he asked, keeping pace with his leader.

"Call me Kakashi out of uniform."

"K-Kakashi, um, senpai. So, if you don't mind—"

"We're rescuing my _stupid_ genin."

Tenzo almost ran into a tree branch. "You have a genin team?"

"Yes." Tenzo could sense his senpai's directionless glower. He decided not to pursue that line of questioning any further. Quickly, they arrived at the forest near one of the training fields.

"What the hell!" Tenzo gaped at the roaring fire. "What happened here?"

"My team did."

Kakashi flashed through over a dozen seals. _"Suiton: Great Waterfall Technique,"_ he muttered. The water rose up from the river and slammed into the burning trees. Gracefully, Kakashi jumped down into the no-longer burning forest, Tenzo right behind him.

When Kakashi found those kids, he was going to _kill_ them.

* * *

"_Suiton: Cloud Drain!" _shouted Naruto, focusing his chakra. The flames simply grew stronger. "_Suiton: Cloud Drain!" _he shouted desperately.

"Naruto. Run." Naruto turned around so quickly he almost fell over.

"What!?"

Sasuke clenched his haw. "I can probably make a path through the trees. It'll only last long enough for one person. You should go."

"And leave you to burn!? Are you crazy? No!" Naruto's eyes blazed with determination. "_Suiton: Cloud Drain!" _

Out of nowhere, a giant wave crashed into the fire. Naruto and Sasuke stared at the soaked trees around them.

"See!" crowed Naruto to a shocked and dripping Sasuke. "It worked! I told you I could do the jutsu! Believe it!"

"Actually," said a voice from behind them. "That was me." Their teacher's eye crinkled as he crossed his arms.

They both flinched and looked guiltily at him.

"Uh, hi sensei! How's it going?" asked Naruto nervously, backing away.

"Oh, it was going perfectly fine until I found out that my students were_ burning down a forest!"_ The atmosphere changed completely. They didn't feel the heavy, crushing feeling of usual killing intent. Instead, they felt the cold feeling of walking along a razor-edged knife. "Please do tell me why you wandered away from the river while practicing _fire jutsu_."

"Uh . . ." Naruto looked at his feet. He hadn't noticed leaving the riverside. Apparently, Sasuke hadn't either.

"I left you with a shadow clone for _one minute_. One minute!" Kakashi-sensei's eye narrowed, and the tension grew infinitely sharper. "You almost got yourselves _killed_," hissed their teacher. The jounin's control broke. For one frightening second, Naruto was completely paralyzed. He couldn't move, he couldn't breathe, he couldn't even _think_.

The pressure drained away abruptly, and Kakashi-sensei wasn't terrifying anymore. Instead, he simply seemed tired.

"I-I'm sorry, sensei," whispered Naruto.

"We're both sorry," said Sasuke, finally. The dark-haired boy glanced up and caught their teacher's gaze.

Kakashi-sensei just looked at them. The silence stretched on for a few minutes until Naruto was suppressing the urge to fidget. Suddenly, their teacher smiled. It was a small one, barely noticeable, but a smile nonetheless.

"I know," said the older man softly. Naruto hesitantly smiled back. Kakashi-sensei stepped closer and ruffled their hair. Both boys relaxed, not even remembering to protest.

"Maa, don't think that this won't have consequences. Three extra hours of training for both of you, and double the D-ranks." Kakashi-sensei's grin grew savage. "Not to mention some little . . . special exercises I have in mind."

Naruto started sweating. That did _not_ sound good.

"Now," continued their teacher, "you're done training for today. I expect you to be at Training Ground Seven tomorrow at six o'clock in the morning. Think you can go there by yourself _without_ burning anything down?"

"Course we can! Believe it!"

"Good. Dismissed." The two genin took the opportunity to flee as fast as they can. The more distance between them and their sensei, the better.

* * *

At ANBU headquarters, Commander Hound examined the map with distaste.

"He has been spotted in these areas?" he asked, gesturing at the marked sections.

"Yes sir."

"He's covered much ground since his appearance near Konoha," remarked one of his operatives. "And he's completely avoided every team we send after him.

"It's as if he knows our every move," murmured another.

The commander glanced at his trusted captains and agents. _ROOT_, he thought darkly. Hound hid his irritation and anger. _Danzo_ continued to plant operatives in the main ANBU—_his ANBU—_and despite their best efforts to neutralize the infiltrators, inevitably, a few slipped through. Hound frowned briefly behind his mask. He had suspicions, but until they had proof, they would remain just that.

"Send a team to scout this area." He pointed to the sector, briefly outlining it. "There have been reports of missing children near our border with Sound." He glanced at the hawk-masked operative, subtly signing more-detailed orders.

_'Acknowledged.' _The head of Reconnaissance vanished from the room.

Commander Hound felt the beginnings of a headache and gritted his teeth. Something was very wrong about this situation. He just couldn't figure out _what._

* * *

Exhausted after a long day of brutal training in chakra control, Naruto and Sasuke collapsed on the floor.

"Maa," drawled Kakashi. "What are you two doing? We still have more work to do."

"More work?" Naruto said with worry and irritation. "What kinda work?"

Kakashi's eye crinkled. "Oh, you'll find out after Sakura arrives."

Naruto brightened. "Sakura-chan? I haven't seen her in ages!"

"Idiot," muttered Sasuke. "It's only been two weeks."

"Yeah, but we've barely seen her!"

Kakashi watched idly, amused that they still had the energy to bicker. After that disastrous training session in the forest, Kakashi had once again been reminded of his teaching skills—or rather, his lack thereof. Apparently, giving two genin scrolls and telling them to learn the techniques was not an effective method. He had immediately rectified the situation; after consulting (threatening) the Academy Teachers and ANBU trainers, he had created a proper ninjutsu training regimen for the two boys.

It seemed to be working. Their control and overall ability had increased dramatically in the past two weeks. Gai, of course, had been drilling Sakura mercilessly in the meantime. Kakashi had seen her improve tremendously as well.

"You're back!" shouted Naruto at the newcomer. "And you… look different."

The pink-haired girl blushed lightly. "Yeah, I guess I do."

Kakashi glanced at his other student. Sending her to Gai had been the right thing to do. Apparently, the training and that Twotwo girl had been a good influence on her. Sakura certainly had changed—mentally and physically. She had become a bit more confident, and her attitude towards training seemed to have altered for the better. Sakura had traded her impractically-long dress for a shorter version. The red was too bright for his taste, but the outfit was definitely more reasonable. And—

"Sakura-chan, your hair!"

Her blush grew deeper. "I decided to put it up. It's kind of hard to fight with long hair." Sakura looked at Sasuke, who seemed rather bored with it all. "D-don't worry, Sasuke-kun! It's still long!" She reached up, plucked the senbon out, and let her hair loose. "See?"

Right, they still had to work on the 'fangirl' tendencies. Sasuke's expression turned a bit confused as he wondered why she was telling him about her hairstyle and why she thought he cared.

"Woah, what's that?" asked Naruto, eyeing the metal objects in her hand.

"Senbon," answered Sakura. "It keeps my hair up _and_ it's practical."

Sasuke scoffed. "Isn't it dangerous to keep lethal weaponry in your hair?"

Sakura laughed coyly, fluttering her eyelashes. "Aw, don't worry about me, Sasuke-kun. They're blunt."

"Then they're useless," said Sasuke. He turned away dismissively.

A strange glint came into her eyes. "Not exactly. I did learn a nice trick with them." With careful aim, Sakura threw the senbon. Instead of bouncing of the tree like the others expected the blunt weapon to do, the senbon embedded itself deep inside the wood.

The boys' eyes widened.

"That was awesome, Sakura-chan!" Naruto exclaimed.

"How did you do that?" Sasuke demanded.

"Tenten-senpai taught me!" bragged Sakura. "All you need to do is mold the chakra inside the weapon to give it extra power."

"Excellent work, Sakura." Kakashi glanced up from his book. "It takes precise chakra control in order to manipulate such a small weapon." He looked pointedly at the two other genin.

"Cool! I wanna try!" Naruto was practically beaming.

Sasuke simply grunted, eyes dark.

"Not now, kiddies." Kakashi closed the _Icha Icha._ "I have something else planned for you."

* * *

"Sensei? Why are we in front of the Hokage Residence?" Sakura nervously said.

"Because we're going to see the Hokage, of course." Kakashi's eye crinkled innocently.

"Uh… how're we gonna do that? The door's that way." Naruto pointed in the opposite direction.

"Right, but the window's _this _way."

"Huh?"

Kakashi patted the wall. "Boys, do you remember that tree-climbing exercise we did?"

Sasuke and Naruto nodded warily. Of course they remembered that. Kakashi-sensei had drilled that exercise until they could do it in their sleep. In fact, they had practiced it earlier today.

"Great! Now, I want you to climb the Hokage Residence using the same technique. Do you see that window? That's our destination."

The genin stared at him.

"Are you _crazy!?"_ shrieked Naruto. "You want us to climb the _Hokage Residence?_ Why not just use the door!?"

Kakashi stared back. "Are you questioning me?" he said sweetly, though with a dangerous undertone.

Naruto and Sasuke exchanged glances. "No," replied Naruto, grudgingly.

"Then get started."

After exchanging disgruntled looks again, the boys began their careful ascent.

"U-um, Kakashi-sensei?" asked Sakura with a hint of hesitation. "I . . . I don't know that exercise." Why _had_ Kakashi-sensei trained Naruto and Sasuke personally? She did have fun with Tenten-senpai, but apparently Sakura wasn't skilled enough for her own sensei.

Kakashi resisted the urge to sigh as Sakura's insecurity reared its ugly head. He'd read about it in the files, but it posed a greater problem than he had initially thought. According to the people he had . . . _asked_, compliments were a valuable way of raising self-esteem. Unfortunately, Kakashi wasn't very good at being nice, but he'd have to try.

"Listen, Sakura," Kakshi paused for a moment. "Do you know why I sent you to train with Gai while I worked with the boys?"

She shook her head.

"Because unlike you, Naruto and Sasuke have poor chakra control. I had to work with them personally because of that. You didn't need the extra training, so I asked Gai to train you in taijutsu instead. It took Sasuke several hours and Naruto several days to master this technique." He caught her gaze and held it. "I bet you can learn this in a few minutes."

Sakura's eyes widened.

Quickly, he explained the theory behind tree-climbing—or in this case, wall-climbing. Kakashi watched through lidded eyes as Sakura determinedly placed one foot then another on the wall. Her confidence grew, and steadily, she climbed up the building.

Kakashi felt the faint flickers of alarm as the stationed ANBU watched the three genin ascend the wall. It was only his presence that kept them from doing anything.

With a sigh, Kakashi flared his chakra in the all-clear pattern. There was the slightest hesitation as the ANBU registered his command and stood down.

Ah, messing with his little ANBU operatives was so much fun, even out of uniform.

He glanced at his team. They had almost reached the top. With ease, Kakashi appeared on the windowsill, causing his genin to flinch.

"What the—" Naruto lost his focus and his balance. Timely intervention by Sasuke and Sakura prevented him from plummeting down.

"Idiot," muttered Sasuke.

"Naruto! You can't just stop concentrating! Do you _want_ to die?" shouted Sakura.

Kakashi ignored their bickering and opened the window, gracefully jumping in.

"Well? Are you coming?" he called out.

Grumbling, the three managed to climb in to the Hokage's office.

The Sandaime watched the spectacle with a raised eyebrow.

"Hatake-san," said the Hokage politely. "You are aware of the door."

Kakashi shrugged. "The window is better, Hokage-sama." The Copy Nin gestured at his nervous students. "This is my genin team. I'm sure you know them already." The slightest hint of sarcasm entered his tone.

"Of course. To what do I owe this visit?" asked Sarutobi, nodding kindly at the pre-teens.

"Maa . . . my genin team knows nothing about politics. I was wondering if you could help them."

Kakashi had put serious consideration into the choice for their teacher. As entertaining it would have been to ask the Hyuuga to teach them, thus making the late Uchiha clan roll in their graves, _politics_ would have made the aftermath too difficult to deal with. Besides, the Hyuuga would sieze the opportunity to twist his cute genin's minds to their advantage. A relatively neutral teacher would be needed. And the Hokage still owed him a few favors, so he made the perfect choice.

"Hm?" Sarutobi glanced at Kakashi. _Explain_, his gaze said.

"Being politically competent is important for a ninja, especially ones that want to be Hokage or run a clan." Here, he glanced meaningfully at his students. "Since you're skilled at politics, I thought you might be able to help, Hokage-sama." Kakashi looked hopefully at his leader.

Sarutobi hid his amusement. He hadn't been described as "skilled at politics" before. Regardless, the Hokage put an unconvinced expression on his face.

"They could help you with paperwork," hedged Kakashi. "They're all really good with paperwork."

A sudden gleam entered the leader's eyes. "I don't see why not. I always have time to help the future of our village."

"Great!" Kakashi smiled at the trembling genin. "Have fun!"

* * *

"Form C-4 . . ." mumbled Naruto. His head still hurt from the ridiculous amount of paperwork he had suffered through. Who knew that the Hokage did so much _boring _stuff?

Despite being half-asleep, Naruto jumped out of bed the second he felt the flare of chakra from outside. After stumbling around, he pushed open the window.

"Hound-sens—" Naruto cut himself off. It was one thing to think of the commander as Hound-sensei , but another thing to actually _call_ him that. "Commander," he said instead. "Where have you—" Again, Naruto stopped. _'Reason for absence?'_ he signed. Where had Hound-sensei _been?_ He hadn't trained them for a whole week!

The commander instead replied, '_Meet me at training field.'_

Biting back a grumble, Naruto hurried after Hound-sensei. Stupid cryptic ANBU leader. Really, it was like he only existed to make his life difficult. And to think he had ever been worried about the man…

* * *

As usual, Naruto was the last to reach the field. The blonde pouted. His apartment was the furthest from the grounds, so it wasn't fair! It wasn't his fault! He smiled at a tired-looking Sakura and glared at a sullen Sasuke.

Naruto and his teammates immediately straightened when Hound appeared before them.

_'Commander,_' they greeted, uniform and synchronized.

The commander examined them, noting their rigid posture and formation. '_At ease.'_ The three relaxed but remained alert. A ninja was never _truly_ at ease, after all. Suddenly, he felt a brief jolt of hesitation. The children were—_no_, they were his operatives. They had become soldiers the second they earned the hitai-ate. And _he _wasn't really one to talk; he had killed his first man at age six. While Konoha was no longer at war, they still had to be prepared for it. Unbidden, a saying of his father's flitted through his mind. _A good shinobi is _always_ prepared for war._

Pushing his emotional attachments away, Commander Hound spoke.

"In one week, the three of you will be assigned your first mission."

* * *

Chapter Five Preview: The team faces death, challenges its preconceptions, and learns more about each other. Also, Hound delves deeper into the darker side of Konoha.

**AN:**

So, with this chapter, the training arc has mostly ended. The next few chapters should detail their mission(s).

This chapter took a little longer than I expected. Sorry about that. Life and my muse made it difficult.

I didn't get as many reviews as last time, but I did get much more favorites and follows than I knew what to do it. Seriously, you guys are awesome. My email was going crazy, and trust me, that's a very good thing. (I may be in the habit of obsessively checking my inbox for alerts. Maybe.)

Much thanks to **la canelle, Okiro Benihime, Hichiisai, celohei,** and **LongRoadToNowhere **for their very kind words. Your reviews all made me really happy!

Special thanks to **fluffpenguin** for correcting a mistake about jutsu in an earlier chapter.

Criticisms, comments, and concerns are encouraged as always.


End file.
